This invention relates to an electronic device suitable for use in an apparatus detachably mounted with respect to main equipment executing optional functions, the apparatus using the device, and a method of reading out data. More particularly, it relates to an electronic device having a shape identical to a memory card or a semiconductor memory unit similar thereto, being connected to a connection part of any of these units and executing optional functions, an apparatus using the device, and a method of reading out data.
For example, there has been proposed an electronic device having the same shape as a memory card device detachably mounted with respect to main equipment or a semiconductor memory unit similar thereto, which is connected to the connection part of any of these memory units and executes optional functions. Namely, in such electronic devices, for example, provision of a connection function to a computer network or a communication function to the external world makes it possible to easily expand the scope of operation and use of the main equipment.
If such device is, for instance, combined with the main equipment comprising a personal computer to execute the aforementioned functions, it is necessary to install driver software on the personal computer end serving as the main equipment for executing the functions. Hence, driver software conventionally stored in a floppy disk or the like attached to the device is manually installed in the main equipment so as to execute the function by means of the driver software thus installed.
In this case, however, the driver software of this type very often relies on the so-called computer operating environment including the computer model and the operating system. Thus, different software may be used depending on the operating environment of the personal computer serving as the main equipment. Consequently, in the aforementioned installation procedure, it becomes necessary to carry out complicated work by determining the proper computer operating environment for a specific computer and selecting the proper software for that computer operating environment.
On the other hand, to reduce any complexity entailed in such work, take, for example, the case of an interface substrate for installation of an external memory unit, where the operating environment of the personal computer as the main equipment is fixed with such arrangements that automatically select the driver software for the external memory unit to be connected. However this unit may be effective for the existing function such as the external memory unit, but not for other functions whatsoever.
In addition, as in the case of “Microsoft Windows 98” (registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation, U.S.A.), what is used today is a system whereby the driver software of almost all commercially available equipment is built in the operating system so that when the equipment is connected, the driver software therein is put to use. This system is effective only with respect to equipment known when the operating system was formulated, and cannot be used for any other new equipment.
The present invention is made for purposes of resolving such a problem. That is, the present invention is intended to resolve the problem that, when an electronic device that can be detachably mounted to the main equipment is used to perform operations such as expansion of the existing function of the main equipment, conventional devices require such cumbersome work as driver software installation to execute an expanded function with regard to the main equipment, thus making it impossible to easily expand the existing function as described above.